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If you’re unfit, getting fit takes time.
If you think you are fit, getting fitter takes time too.
The good news is - you have the rest of your life for this.
If you haven’t exercised for some time, you should probably see your GP before starting training. Nigel Molesworth once observed that bullies came in two genera: fat bullies who can’t run for toffee and fat bullies who can run fast. Much the same applies to doctors. Either they disapprove of exercise and recommend your exposure to same should be restricted to Match of the Day and Wimbledon, with the option of the boat race if you can stand the excitement, or they’re keen athletes themselves and recommend several hours of fresh air (or nearest available substitute) per day. Naturally, the constitution of the patient has very little bearing on their judgement, which like most ‘informed decisions’ is based largely on prejudice.
First, buy decent shoes. If you can, go to a specialist running shop like Run and Become. Don’t buy shoes by mail order or over the internet until you have some idea of styles and brands you like. Nike make a lot of shoes for the fashion market, and they’re not all appropriate for running. Try a few brands which specialise in running for comparison, as they’re more likely to be suitable. Try them on. The width of your thumb between the tip of your big toe and the end of the shoe is about right.
When you start running, don’t go as far as you can until you have to stop. Take it easy. Run a bit, walk when you feel yourself slow down, start to run again when you feel recovered. You’ll do a lot more running that way than if you just run until you collapse and then walk home. Also, walking when you intend to is a lot more dignified.
When you can run a circuit which feels right to you, hold it there for a bit. Try to speed up. There are two ways to do this. Start more slowly and go round in an even pace, and run more quickly. The way to test for the first is to wear a watch and run your route in reverse every so often. If you know roughly where you get to after 10 minutes and it takes more than 10 minutes to get back when you’re running the opposite way, you’re starting too fast and burning out. Learn even pace before you increase the distance.
Relax. You may feel self-conscious when you run in public, and you may feel you need to push yourself. Running Tall isn’t just the title of Olympic gold medallist Sally Gunnell’s autobiography, it’s good practice. If you think your shoulders are too tense, raise them as high as you can (aim for your ears!) for about 30 seconds while running and feel how much better it is when you drop them again.
Increase mileage slowly. Run only a few days a week at first. Then try to run more (a rest day or two won’t kill you). Then try to run further - gradually.
Running can be uncomfortable if you go too slowly as well as too fast, so it’s not easy to find someone with a similar pace as you straight off. Also, if you run on your own, you get to know your own body and your own limits. If you need company, consider joining a fitness class such as circuits or aerobics. You can usually hide if you’re not very fit and need to stop, and you should find that others encourage you, and some of them may even try running with you.
Running magazines often (actually almost every issue) have some information for beginners, but you can find much of their advice (or as good as) on sites like Running for Fun. London running club Serpentine has a very detailed section on Running for beginners.
If you’re interested in theory, I consider Arthur Lydiard to be the most influential distance coach ever and the Lydiard Foundation has a lot of good background on the basics of running. They have a summary of his principles in a 5.8MB PDF file. The summary of the summary could be expressed as concentrate on ‘running at a good effort and finishing each run feeling pleasantly tired.’ If you feel you need to know everything, Better Training for Distance Runners is about as comprehensive as they get.
Last updated 14 September 2008
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